Middle School students enjoy a day of learning at Smith Rock

Getting students into natural areas, such as Smith Rock State Park, is a core value for the Friends and Neighbors of the Deschutes Canyon Area (FANs) organization, which recently spent a day with teacher Julie O’Neill’s photography class.

The focus of the field trip was learning how to use a camera to document the natural world. Activities included finding and photographing various natural items, like animal bones hidden in a natural area of native plants, visiting an active bald eagle nest with two chicks and going into the canyon to experience its grandeur.

The class met up with Robin Galloway, a retired Oregon State University professor and president of FANS, Amy Matthews, a Smith Rock Ranger and Marilynne Keyser, past president of FANS and a birding and plant expert. Having these experts on hand provided a great deal of information and context about what the students were viewing and experiencing at the park.